DL: There are a lot of books by authors like Robert Jordan, David Eddings, Terry Goodkind, etc. that are popular. Do you find a lot of the Fantasy books hitting the bestseller lists derivative? Do you think they're helpful to further the field?
PB: To a certain extent, all books are derivative. The subgenre of epic fantasy is one of the few genres of fantasy that traditionally produces bestselling novels - meaning that people who don't read fantasy will read epic fantasy. We owe this in a large part to the reputation of Tolkien, whose torch was taken up by Terry Brook's The Sword of Shannara, the first trade paperback to hit the NYT Bestselling Lists. Now, publishing houses look at epic fantasies and say, "Gee, this might be a bestseller." So they promote it as a bestseller - and the promotion helps make it come true. Because most of these books are epic fantasies, they share certain similarities. To me a good book is a good book, whether it is a Terry Brooks novel, a Laurell K. Hamilton or a Wen Spencer. I like most of the bestselling fantasy books, and when I don't like them, it's not because they were too much like another book I've read.
Remember, authors are not in competition with each other. Any author who can pull in readers, benefits the industry as a whole -- as well as their readership. I have a friend who had never read a book since high school. Last year she picked up a Nora Roberts book and liked it. Now she reads all the time, and not just Nora Roberts. While Harry Potter fans are eagerly awaiting the next installment, they might try Tamora Pierce, Jane Yolen, or Brian Jacques. Some of them will continue to read fantasy decades from now - and without Harry Potter, they might never have tried reading anything at all.
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